Golden Lemon Cheesecake Bars (Vegan No-Bake)
These Golden Lemon Cheesecake Bars are creamy, delicious and require no baking. They are made with wholesome, vegan and gluten-free ingredients and are great all summer long for desserts and snacks.
I look a good slice of cheesecake and these bars have everything you could want in a bar form. They have an oat and almond flour “biscuit” base made with almond butter and maple syrup all topped with a thick layer of golden cashew nut and coconut cream cheesecake. The golden glow colour comes from a gorgeous golden milk blend (linking here) and you can similarly use a pinch of turmeric, or leave it out for a lovely light yellow colour. Serve these cheesecakes with some extra lemon zest and pistachios for a delightful summery dessert or afternoon treat.
Why will I love these cheesecakes?
These cheesecakes are amazing:
- Creamy, smooth and delicious
- Soft, tender and spoon-able
- With a nutty sweet cookie-dough like biscuit base
- Golden and glowing with a turmeric latte blend
- Lemony and zesty
- Nutty and sweet
- Made with wholesome ingredients
- Naturally gluten-free, dairy-free and egg-free
- Totally plant-based
- Requires no baking
- Great for summery desserts and snacks
- Can be made ahead of time
- Freezes well
If you already love the sound of these cheesecakes, then skip ahead to the recipe card below. Or, first let’s discuss the recipe in more detail.
What ingredients do I need?
You can see the ingredients with weights in the recipe card below and to see my favourites, check out the “shop the recipe” section.
For the base:
- Oat flour: or use oats and blend them into a fine flour.
- Almond flour: or ground almonds add moisture, fat and a delicious nutty flavour.
- Lemon zest: for flavour.
- Smooth runny almond butter: or cashew, peanut or hazelnut butter would work. I also love these with sunflower seed butter or tahini.
- Maple syrup: for stickiness and sweetness. You can also use agave or date syrup.
- Melted coconut oil: this helps the base set firm enough to slice but soft enough that they melt in your mouth.
As for the cheesecake:
- Cashew nuts: soak these overnight or in boiling water for 30-60 minutes to soften up. They then blend into the most beautiful cheesecake consistency. Make sure they are raw and unsalted nuts.
- Silken tofu: this is a great ingredient for cheesecakes as it adds creaminess and volume without adding flavour. It’s also high in protein and sets silky-smooth.
- Coconut cream: this is the solid cream part from a tin of chilled full-fat coconut cream and sets solid but soft enough to make the cheesecakes soft. You can also use a tin of solid coconut cream.
- Maple syrup and coconut oil: as above.
- Golden milk blend: this adds the gorgeous golden hue to the cheesecakes as well as a subtle turmeric latte flavour. I use the one from Garden of Life which contains cardamom, ginger, black pepper and cinnamon as well as the turmeric. If not, use ¼ tsp ground turmeric into the mix, purely for colour, or leave it out.
- Vanilla extract: for flavour.
To serve these cheesecakes, I like to add lemon zest, desiccated coconut and pistachios but you can add whatever you like, for example some flaked almonds, pomegranate seeds or crushed walnuts.
Are they nut-free and gluten-free?
These do contain nuts, and cannot be made nut-free (but see other cheesecake and no-bake recipes for ideas) and to keep these gluten-free, make sure your oats/oat flour are gluten-free.
How do I make them?
These cheesecakes are ready in a few steps:
- Mix together the ingredients for the base: to a sticky dough.
- Press the mix into a lined tin: and chill in the fridge.
- Add all of the cheesecake ingredients to a blender: and process until really smooth.
- Pour the cheesecake over the base: and chill in the fridge for 4-6 hours or overnight.
- To serve, remove from the tin: and slice into bars.
- Decorate with extra lemon zest, desiccated coconut and pistachios: and enjoy.
How long will they last?
These will keep for up to 1 week in the fridge in a sealed container and you can freeze them for 1 month. Allow to thaw for 30 minutes before eating.
What else can I make?
For more cheesecake and no-bake ideas:
- Double Chocolate Hazelnut Cheesecake
- Mocha Caramel Cheesecake
- Chocolate Strawberry Mousse Tart
- Cherry Bakewell Chocolate Ganache Cookie Cups
- Peanut Butter Strawberry FroYo Bites
Golden Lemon Cheesecake Bars (Vegan No-Bake)
These Golden Lemon Cheesecake Bars are creamy, delicious and require no baking. They are made with wholesome, vegan and gluten-free ingredients and are great all summer long for desserts and snacks.
Ingredients
For the Base:
- 125g oat flour
- 75g ground almonds or almond flour
- ½ lemon, zested
- 100g smooth, runny almond butter
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tbsp melted coconut oil
- Pinch of salt
For the Cheesecake:
- 80g cashews, soaked
- 120g silken tofu
- 80g coconut cream, from 1 chilled tin of full-fat coconut milk
- 1 lemon, zested
- ½ lemon, juiced
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp melted coconut oil
- 1 tbsp Golden Milk Blend
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
For the Topping:
- 1 tbsp crushed pistachios
- 1 tbsp desiccated coconut
- Extra lemon zest
Instructions
- Line a square 15-cm/6-inch tin with parchment paper. Chill the tin of full-fat coconut milk in the fridge overnight. Soak the cashews in cool water overnight, or soak in boiling water for 30-60 minutes and then drain and rinse.
- For the base, mix together the oat flour, ground almonds and lemon zest to combine. Now pour in the almond butter, syrup, coconut oil and salt and stir to reach a cookie dough consistency. Reserve 30g of the cookie dough mix and wrap in clingfilm Transfer the rest of the mix to the tin and press down well to make an even base. Chill in the fridge while you move on.
- For the cheesecake mix, add the cashews and tofu to a blender. Scoop off 80g of coconut cream from the tin (save the rest for curries and smoothies) and add to the blender with the rest of the cheesecake ingredients. Blend until really smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary.
- Pour the cheesecake over the base and smooth over the top. Chill in the fridge for 4-6 hours, or overnight, until firm to touch (or in the freezer for 2-3 hours). Once solid, cover with clingfilm, if you like.
- To serve, remove from the fridge and carefully lift out of the tin. Break apart the leftover cookie dough into crumbs and sprinkle over the cheesecake with the pistachios, desiccated coconut and extra lemon zest.
- Use a sharp knife to slice into 9 squares and enjoy straight away. Keep leftovers in the fridge in a sealed container for 1 week, or in the freezer, wrapped well, for 1 month. Allow to thaw for 30 minutes before eating.
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Stay in touch
I look forward to hearing what you think of these Golden Lemon Cheesecake Bars so please let me know in the comments below and leave a star review above. If you do make these, I’d love to see so please tag me, I’m @nourishing.amy on Instagram and use the hashtag #nourishingamy. I’m also on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest – please say hello!
With golden love x
p.s. this recipe was first made with Garden of Life but this blog post is not sponsored and all opinions are my own.
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